Alexandra, have you seen "Her"? I love that movie and am glad to see it get a best picture nomination. I first thought it was Siri's autobiography. Alas, I fear if Siri and SkyNet hook up, we're doomed. Can YOU imagine if some creates an OS based on you?

A: Alexandra Petri

I did see it!

I had so many thoughts that I wrote up half a piece about it just on steam emerging from the theater. I thought it was interesting how for the protagonist the computer became a tool that helped him see the world around him better instead of something he stared into to escape the surrounding world. Something has radically shifted in terms of tech interaction between now and then. Also: voice interface? Really?

I wish Ezra well on his new gig - he did great work here - but don't YOU leave us, Alexandra! Who's going to take care of the newsroom office mouse? I don't think Karen Tumulty will as she complains about it on twitter. If y'all adopted an office cat, I could move to DC to be hired by WaPo to take care of it.

A: Alexandra Petri

We could always hire someone in a cat suit to alarm the office mouse and lift our spirits/leave the mouse unfazed and cause everyone else to quit abruptly.

I am always compelled to put a big pot of beans on the stove with a ham bone in it to cook all day.

A: Alexandra Petri

My reflex is to heat up something and put marshmallows in it. Unfortunately all I have is coffee and no marshmallows but I also have some stollen (sp?) a friend baked earlier, which is amazing, so I'm making do.

...political or polar vortex, that is - as it's just announced he cancelled his inauguration due to snow. Or is he using snow as another excuse to hide from the media over current scandals? (Okay, sorry for the political jab here, like there are ever any political fights at this website.)

I didn't panic yesterday, stock up on apocalypse-like necessities, or batten my snow-hatches. Though I did pull my windshield wipers up so they won't freeze to the window. Am I screwed or most likely to be eaten first?

A: Alexandra Petri

Eaten? Are you kidding me? This is DC! How would they get to you? No one will have the intestinal fortitude to leave the house.

what about the continuing theme of a man's ideal woman being something unreal?

A: Alexandra Petri

For a few seconds, it was Pygmalion, then it evolved into something else entirely.

David Henry Hwang has an interesting comment in M. Butterfly about how nothing can compete in a man's mind with a woman created by a man. I don't know how far it goes for Samantha, but maybe worth considering.

Eh, he can always boast later about how much money he saved by not holding an inauguration = fiscally conscious. It's all spin. Like, causing a traffic tie-up was his way of encouraging people to stay in New Jersey and spend money in their home state. Win-win, right?

A: Alexandra Petri

It's all about the spin! I like the way you think. Have any suggestions for the NSA or the snow?

Let's see. It's listening to our phone calls because it's really Santa Claus. He knows when we've been sleeping, he knows when we're awake, he knows when we've been bad or good. And you've got to admit he's pretty mysterious.

A: Alexandra Petri

If we're negatively spinning the snow, we could suggest that, as former water, Snow is just in the pocket of Big Water and is trying to drive up bottled water sales artificially.

when it snows? That is what the "bread/milk/eggs" panic is about right? I grew up in MA and we made soup (canned clam chowder) and hot chocolate and sometimes popcorn for apre shoveling. If the power went out, we got peanut butter/marshmallow fluff sandwiches in front of the fireplace with sleeping bags.

If the power outage lasted a long time, it got very cold in the house (did I mention that we were in front of the fireplace because, even though the heat was from an oil burning boiler, it needed electricity to work?) However, power outages didn't last that long on my street. We had a cop and two firefighters plus a couple of nurses in my nabe, so we got prioritized for plowing. Since the lots were smaller, the power company got credit for bringing more customers on line by fixing our neighborhood early and with the plowing done, they had no reason not to come to our street. The big houses on multiple acre lots had to wait forever to get power back. They probably had generators. Do not recommend the power outage, but all other aspects of childhood snowstorms were good - including the sledding hill in back of one of the elementary schools. It was PERFECT.

A: Alexandra Petri

I still think that sounds fairly idyllic on net, but thanks for adding to the picture! All that and a sledding hill! Well done!

If you can run down to the store and pick you up a few bags of marshmallows (or have an intern do it for you if on deadline), skip the coffee and just eat the marshmallows. The sugar high will keep you going through the work day.

My reflex is to decide whether (a) I must go to work, (b) I could go to work if I wanted to get hero points, (c) I can stay home but I still have to work, which usually means less productivity, (d) I can stay home and I don't have to work. So it's more of a snow day calculus, really.

A: Alexandra Petri

See, this is the kind of Actual Life-Related Calculation I wish showed up on more standardized tests, as well as How To Divide Checks Among Groups of People Unwilling To Take Any Initiative And Including One Guy Who Is Secretly Underpaying Because He Forgot How Many Beers He Had. If X equals hero points gained by going to work, Y equals work done, Z equals time of commute -- there's a formula in here somewhere, is my point!

Alexandra Petri writes the ComPost, a lighter take on the news and issues of the day, and she contributes to the Post editorial page. Her work has appeared in venues such as The Huffington Post, The Week, Newsweek.com, Businessweek.com, Collegehumor, and The Harvard Crimson. She has appeared on Jeopardy!, Showbiz Tonight and Canadian radio, and she has performed at Boston's Comedy Studio and Comedy Connection. She would love to be on your TV show, radio show, Daily Show, HBO special, or to be an honored guest (or regular guest) at your Bar Mitzvah. She is the author of two books (unpublished, but contact her!), two screenplays, three plays, one musical, and one memoir (Ernest Hemingway's A Moveable Feast.)